"Emergency Text After 8 Hours of No Phone Use... 50s Person Who Left a Will Saved by This App"

Sending Alert Text When Mobile Phone Is Not Used During Designated Time

A man in his 50s who was wandering around after leaving a suicide note was rescued through the 'Lonely Death Safety Application (app),' which automatically sends a rescue text message if the phone is not used for a designated period of time.

According to Yonhap News on the 30th, on the 24th, an emergency rescue request text message sent via the Lonely Death Safety app was received on a shared phone at the Daemyeong 9-dong Administrative Welfare Center in Nam-gu, Daegu. The message included a note stating that the phone had not been used for 8 hours, along with location information of a disabled person, Mr. A.

Emergency relief request text sent by the 'Solitude Safety App' and a will left by a man in his 50s. [Image source=Daegu Nam-gu Office, Yonhap News]

Upon receiving the report, the welfare team dispatched to the scene found a suicide note and other items at Mr. A’s residence but could not find him. Continuing their search, they discovered Mr. A wandering around the house. Subsequently, through an emergency consultation with the Suicide Prevention Team at the Nam-gu Mental Health Welfare Center, Mr. A was admitted to a nearby hospital.

During an investigation at the Administrative Welfare Center, it was confirmed that Mr. A, classified as a vulnerable household, had the Lonely Death Safety app installed on his phone. This project uses the 'National Safety Service' app developed by Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongnam Province, and is designed for vulnerable groups such as elderly living alone, disabled persons, and those with mobility difficulties. When the app is installed and the phone is not used for a designated time, a rescue text message is automatically sent to the welfare center’s shared phone. In Daemyeong 9-dong, a total of 116 vulnerable households have installed the Lonely Death Safety app.

A Daemyeong 9-dong official said, "We personally install the app during home visits to vulnerable households," and added, "We will strive to encourage more single-person households to participate in the Lonely Death Prevention Safety App project in the future."